The Most Expensive Health Care in the World Is Far From the Best

[ck4829]

It’s a fantasy world where none of the the byzantine, baffling, sometimes ruinous financing of US medical care exists — no insurance premiums, deductibles, copays, out-of-pocket limits, surprise bills, ambulance fees, payment plans, health savings accounts, coverage denials, coverage appeals, insulin costs, patient assistance charities, crowdfunding a,nd medical bankruptcies. Nice dream, right?

Then, back in the real world, you break your leg in one of the scores of countries with universal health insurance. You’re taken to an emergency room, where you receive X-rays. You’re seen by a doctor or nurse practitioner who confirms the diagnosis. You get a stabilizing boot and some crutches. And off you go, without so much as a parking fee.

That’s when reality comes crashing in. You thought you lived in the country with the finest health care in the world. You don’t. You live in the country with the world’s most expensive health care. A country where, 12 years after an enormous legislative effort to extend affordable coverage to the entire population, 8% still lack health insurance. Where half of adults are worried about medical costs that sometimes force them to delay or forgo care. Where life expectancy ranks 40th among all nations — that’s just better than Ecuador but behind Turkey, for those of you scoring at home — and newborn mortality ranks 33rd worldwide. 

The only category in which the US hold the undisputed lead is in measures of health spending — gross, per capita, and as a percentage of GDP.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2022-11-30/the-most-expensive-health-care-in-the-world-is-far-from-the-best

[bucolic_frolic]

1. Throw more money at it

The insurers need incentives

[burrowowl]

2. K&R

[IronLionZion]

3. We've seen private sector efficiency make things very slow, poor quality, and expensive

while plenty of people are getting rich from it. And in the US, when you lose your job, you lose your health insurance as an extra kick while you're down.

[jaxexpat]

4. Facts about American Healthcare? We don' need no stinkin' facts about American Healthcare.

At this time, we can only place Band-Aids on the systemic problem because of political "realities". Which is newspeak for, "Too many huge investments by ambitious people are at stake to change, much less improve, anything in an effective way". Obamacare essentially only improved American Healthcare by spreading the pain of working within a miserable system over a larger demographic.

Our only logical approaches to reform are like trying to repair the engine of a get-away car while on the run right after a heist.

[Evolve Dammit]

5. I believe the system is broken for many. Between co-pays, deductibles, "out-of-network", and

premiums, our family spends between 8-10K per year. And we have employer-based insurance that used to be, USED TO BE be good, even 15 years ago. Every year it got worse and I watched the gross corporate greed that consolidated the industry and the new buildings going up, as these corporations gobbled up all the smaller clinics and specialty practices. A minority of doctors, dentists, etc. refuse to participate and either retire or go it alone. The rest are employed by these huge corporations and subject to their rules. I have lost three physicians who were either terminated or went it alone and I can't afford to see them if they are "out-of-network."

I remember when BC/BS was NON-profit. We had a plan for a while that you could get many commonly prescribed meds from a Canadian (CanRX) company that networked with other countries for free. This was ended when a Republican admin came into office. It was a blessing for the consumers, but apparently wrankled pharmacists who complained to the State Legislature ad the program was cut.

U.S. "consumers" (patients) are increasingly paying more out-of-pocket as "Big Pharma" and the army of lobbyists control the politicians. How many drug ads have we watched over the last ten years and how much money is spent in that slick marketing using ACTORS with the disclaimers? My favorite is "side effects may include Death." Yeah that would be an undesirable side effect.

I remember when Oprah interviewed Harry and Meghan and the Brits that watched couldn't believe all our drug ads, cause of course they don't have them as health care in UK is free.

Medical debt is still the number one cause of bankruptcy in the U.S.of A. That alone says it's a broken, perverted system.

[Uncle Joe]

6. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread ck.

[fightforfreedom]

7. We have a new healthcare system for all within our reach. We just need the courage to do it.

Medicare for All. Medicare part A and B work great. They are one plan for all. Easy to figure out and people like it. The problem is Medicare part C and D. They are convoluted. Dozens of insurances companies offering different plans. It's impossible to figure out.

If we created a Medicare part C and D that was one plan for all, people would like it. Once we did that we could expand Medicare to all Americans which would drive all our costs down.

We as a people, a nation, simply don't have the courage to do it.


I can assure everyone, when you get something like cancer the last thing you want to deal with is insurance companies and bills. Medicare for All would remove a lot of stress and worries from our lives. You can't put a price tag on that.

[erronis]

10. Let's add mental health coverage as well as dental, optical.

They keep the peasants poor by separating these areas of concern into their own profit centers.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

22. I think all of us deserve the

Healthcare quality that senators have
We all should have universal healthcare and all "cadillac" plans. Wtf makes us believe we deserve less and must tolerate less . I dont belive rich people deserve the best care ,we all do! Dental,mental health everything. It is a human necessity.

[nightwing1240]

11. Very well said!

I don't think we lack the courage, I think it is more large numbers of us sticking to it and demanding this is what WE want

[Lonestarblue]

15. And get rid of Medicare Advantage.

It was sold as a way for private insurance to take on Medicare patients and save the government money. Instead it costs more money because Advantage patients are now costing more than original Medicare patients. Plus, the plans vary widely, as does the actual quality of healthcare. Some people get good results on Advantage plans, while other have nothing but complaints about insurers adding on costs or refusing to pay fir treatment.

Advantage was an attempt by the insurance industry to privatize Medicare and thus make a fortune in premiums. They’re succeeding because people want the extra services not covered by Medicare. Then when they become the only providers by getting the government out of Medicare entirely, they can raise prices and cut services as insurers frequently do.

I chose original Medicare because I can go to the doctors of my choice, not just a few doctors in the insurer’s network. I don’t need an authorization to see a specialist of my choice. My doctors and I make the decisions about my medical care, not a profit-driven insurance stooge. And if I need medical care while traveling to another state, I am not charged extra because I’m out of network.

Preserving original Medicare is worth doing because at some point we may find it has all been privatized and is no better than the thousands of for-profit healthcare plans offered by insurance companies. I had private insurance through employers my whole working life, and I can say for sure that Medicare is much better and less a hassle than any private insurance I ever had.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

23. Medicaid

Has been fucked up by privatization bullshit too. I hate the damn referrals bullshit. Sick of the hoops to jump through. Its stupid.

[The Jungle 1]

8. TFG has a plan.

He is going to release it next week and we will be getting the check from Mexico.

What I will never understand is why republican Americans continue to support the republican party. They have never supported one thing that helped the American people. Medicare, Medicaid, SS, education, feeding the poor, housing are all liberal causes.

[nightwing1240]

9. But, but national healthcare would be socialism

Sick of hearing that stupid excuse as to why it should not exist in the USA. Come on people! Police, fire departments, public schools etc are social programs. Your social security you do not wish to lose is socialism!

Ok I am preaching to the choir here but a rant is in order for the countless public figures, political or otherwise, as well as people worse off financially or perhaps in the same boat as we accepting that nonsense as gospel.

Like some have mentioned, Medicare for all is the simplest way to proceed.

There's a lot more we can all share on the subject. ObamaCare was a very good first start, let's push for and demand more!

[area51]

14. +1 n/t

[erronis]

12. And healthcare in the US is treated as a "benefit" for companies to use as leverage.

Not a universal right.

Think how much we could shrink the HR departments of big corpa if they didn't have to deal with health insurance.

[70sEraVet]

20. I have wondered why US companies have not been pushing for Medicare-for-all.

Why wouldn't US companies see having to be responsible for providing health insurance to their employees, as a competitive disadvantage to companies based in countries that have health insurance provided by their governments?

[erronis]

13. Also consider the takeover of all of human life activities by capitalists

From before cradle to in the grave with stops in hospitals, caretakers, hospices, morticians, cemeteries along the way. Each stop a way for the corporatists to shake more money out of our pockets.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

24. I so dispise capitalism.

[twodogsbarking]

16. The plan is working. The one where we all get screwed.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

21. Yes, voter/vassals dependent on corporations for their very health and well being, as god intended!

[onecaliberal]

17. It is another universe worse.

[Wounded Bear]

18. We don't have a Health Care System, we have a Health Care Industry...

A "System" would be streamlined and would incentivize preventive care and desirable health outcomes.

The Industry we have is designed to maximize profits, particularly to those who are isolated from the outcomes.

[dflprincess]

19. The ACA expanded access to "coverage"

But access to coverage does not translate to access to care when the large deductibles allowed prevent a person from seeking care.

Medical bankruptcies are still common among the "covered".

[ck4829]

25. Kick. Feels kind of relevant today.